India suffered a setback ahead of the third Test in Rajkot in the ongoing five-match series against England as KL Rahul has been ruled out due to injury. Devdutt Padikkal, Rahul’s teammate from Karnataka, has been named as his replacement.

Rahul had previously missed the second Test in Visakhapatnam due to a quadriceps injury and was included in the squad for the remaining three Tests pending fitness.

However, the BCCI stated that Rahul has only achieved 90% fitness and will continue his rehabilitation at the NCA to reach full fitness.

“KL Rahul, whose availability for the remaining three Tests was subject to fitness, has been ruled out of the third Test against England in Rajkot. Mr. Rahul has reached 90 percent of match fitness and is progressing well under the supervision of the BCCI Medical Team. He will continue his recovery process at the National Cricket Academy (NCA) in Bengaluru to be completely match-fit for the fourth and fifth Test,” BCCI stated.

The BCCI additionally verified that Devdutt Padikkal, a left-handed batsman, has been selected as Rahul’s substitute for the third Test, set to commence on February 15, 2024.

Padikkal recently showcased his batting prowess with outstanding performances, including scores of 151 and 36 against Tamil Nadu in the fifth round of the Ranji Trophy fixture in Chennai, which concluded on Monday. The 23-year-old southpaw has amassed an impressive total of 556 runs in six innings this Ranji season, boasting an average of 92.66. Notably, he has recorded three centuries, with a top score of 193 in the season opener against Punjab.

Furthermore, Padikkal demonstrated his capabilities with scores of 65, 21, and 105 for India A during their matches against the touring England Lions in Ahmedabad. In Visakhapatnam, Rajat Patidar received his Test debut from the Indian team. Sarfaraz Khan, along with Padikkal, represents the uncapped batting talent in contention.

India’s squad for the third Test:

Rohit Sharma (C), Jasprit Bumrah (VC), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shubman Gill, Rajat Patidar, Sarfaraz Khan, Dhruv Jurel (WK), KS Bharat (WK), R Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Akshar Patel, Washington Sundar, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed. Siraj, Mukesh Kumar, Akash Deep, Devdutt Padikkal.

(BCCI inputs)